Western Religion

(Special to Informed Comment; Feature) – While the US mainstream media and most political leaders have condemned ceasefire rallies for embracing the cry “from the river to the sea” as being anti-Semitic, the government of Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu has been openly championing an Israel “from the river to the sea.” And while ceasefire rallies […]

Antisemitism

Confessions of an Ex-Zionist: My Judaism will not stand for the Mass Slaughter in Gaza

H. Scott Prosterman

Oakland, Ca. (Special to Informed Comment; Feature) – I grieve for the people of Israel and Palestine, both of whom are being abused and terrorized by their own governments and leadership. Hamas is not a legitimate government, and is not Islam. Zionism is not Judaism. Hamas and the Israeli government have used their own people’s […]

Arab Americans

How Islamophobia and anti-Palestinian Racism are Manufactured through Disinformation

The Conversation

By Jasmin Zine, Wilfrid Laurier University | – (The Conversation) – In political communication, a big lie — what is known as the “illusory truth effect” — is when the constant repetition of misinformation makes people more likely to accept it as truth. Repetition is how lies gain traction. The more exposure to specific ideas […]

Christianity

The Dangerous Exceptionalism of Christian Zionism

Al-Shabaka

by Halah Ahmad, Mimi Kirk ( Al Shabaka ) – In recent years, much has been written about the rise of white supremacist movements in the US, their support for alt-right politics, and former President Donald Trump as their political champion. Similarly, since 2016 much has been written about the overwhelming support Trump has received from […]

Antisemitism

In Historic Announcement, Biden Bans Anti-Muslim, Anti-Jewish Discrimination under Title VI for Federal Agencies

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – It is a truism that there are some ethnic groups in the United States toward whom it is still permitted to show bigotry. Whereas public figures can be cancelled for racism against African Americans, Hispanics, and other groups, ragging on Muslim Americans is a blood sport in American politics. Trump […]

Islamophobia

What is an Abaya − and why does it cause such Controversy in France? A scholar of European Studies Explains

The Conversation

By Armin Langer, University of Florida | – (The Conversation) – Worn by some Muslim women, an abaya is a long, loose-fitting, robelike garment that covers the entire body, except for the face, hands and feet. Through the abaya, women can express their religious identity and dedication to following Islamic guidelines regarding modest attire. In […]

Featured

Taliban in Tel Aviv: Israel Joins Middle East in Clashing over Gender Segregation, Women’s rights in Public Sphere

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Haaretz reports that at public prayers for Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, at Dizengoff Square in Tel Aviv on Sunday evening, Ultra-Orthodox activists attempted to put up banners as separators to allow for the segregation of male and female worshipers. This action was seen as a provocation by liberal […]

African-Americans

How some Muslim and non-Muslim Rappers alike embrace Islam’s Greeting of Peace

The Conversation

By Margarita Guillory, Boston University and Jeta Luboteni, Boston University | – Ever since the United States’ “war on terror” began, American media has been rife with stereotypes of Muslims as violent, foreign threats. Advocates trying to push back against this characterization sometimes emphasize that “Islam means peace,” since the two words are derived from […]

Featured

Muslims are understandably Protesting Qur’an Burning in Sweden, but the Qur’an itself urges them to do so Peacefully

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Swedish police permitted the burning of the Muslim scripture, the Qur’an (Koran) in front of the Iraqi embassy in Stockholm, on the grounds that previous attempts to stop such acts have been overruled by the courts on freedom of speech grounds. Hate acts targeting minorities are not actually free […]